Country diary: As spring bursts into life, all eyes on the Cairngorms barbecue ban | Amanda Thomson

Abernethy Forest, Scotland: On glorious mornings like this, with the woods ringing with sound and light, I’m glad there is extra protection from wildfires In the pinewoods, the colours are slowly shifting, the birches to their spring green and the larch roses are blossoming pink. The pair of pied wagtails have returned to our neighbour’s shed and the peewits are back on the marshes, though fewer in number (and there are two pairs of crows that maraude their territory). The siskins have return...